Justin Bullock, FISM News
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) asked President Biden to appoint a liaison in the White House for the Jewish community on Thursday after anti-Semitic hate speech and attacks have seen a sharp rise in the United States. In particular, the Anti-Defamation League reported that anti-Semitic incidents reached record levels from 2015-2019. From 2018 to 2019 alone anti-Semitic incidents rose 12% and the ADL reports that anti-Semitic violence is at a 40 year high.
The ADL also indicated in a press release last week that the recent 11 day conflict between Israel and Hamas generated a further uptick in anti-Semitic incidents across the country. The ADL reported that during the first week of the Israel-Hamas conflict, anti-Semitic incidents jumped 47%. This was highlighted by two attacks which received national attention that were carried out in New York and Los Angeles. The ADL has also said that anti-Semitic speech has seen a rise on social media. ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt told the press,
Oftentimes in the past where there would be a conflagration in the Middle East, there might be an uptick in anti-Semitism here… But the last two weeks, it has been more drastic and frankly, more dangerous… We have seen unhinged memes, we have seen inflammatory videos, and we have seen crazy conspiracy theories that are circulating through Instagram, through WhatsApp, through TikTok and Twitter, through YouTube.
The ADL defines anti-Semitic violence as, “an attempt to inflict physical harm on one or more people who are Jewish or perceived to be Jewish, accompanied by evidence of anti-Semitic animus.” Greenblatt has also indicated that anti-Semitic violence and speech has been on the rise throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and told the public in 2020,
Anti-Semitism is a virus. It is like a disease, and it persists… It’s sometimes known as the oldest hatred. It never seems to go away. There truly is no single antidote or cure.